According to the 1st Quarter 2018 Waterway Newsletter, produced by the Statistical and Performance Evaluation Office of the National Waterway Transportation Agency (ANTAQ), the country’s private ports and terminals (TUP) moved 249.2 million tons period. The result represents a decrease of 0.5% (1.2 million tons) compared to the first quarter of 2017.

Considering only the movement of private terminals, there was a decrease of 2.3% compared to the same period of last year. In the public ports, there was a growth of 3.2%, compared to the same period of 2017. For ANTAQ’s Statistics and Performance Evaluation Manager, Fernando Serra, the number is an indication that the sector is able to meet the demands of the Brazilian market in domestic movements and in exports and imports.

Among the groups with the highest volume of merchandise in the first quarter of 2018, iron ore stood at 87.5 million tonnes, down 6.3%, and oil (48.7 million tonnes and a decrease of 1 , 1% in relation to the same period of the previous year). Containers were the third busiest cargo, with 26.4 million tons and growth of 11.5%, with a 14% increase in imports and a 9.7% increase in exports.

Other products worthy of note in the first quarter of 2018 were maize, with 3.7 million tons handled and a significant increase of 88.2%, and soybean, with 24.2 million tons and a 5.1% increase in relation to the same period last year. Solid bulk continued with its significant share of cargo handling in the country, representing 61.8% of the total volume traded in the period.

The ten main ports organized in the handling of gross cargoes operated approximately 72.2 million tons, corresponding to 85.9% of the total movement of the 30 organized ports that registered cargo movements in the first quarter of 2018.

“The good performance of oil cargoes (+ 7.4%), containers (+ 15.5%) and corn (+ 80.6%), which recovered from a 81.6% drop in exports of the product for the first quarter of 2017, was sufficient to overcome the losses of movement in other types of merchandise and pull growth in public ports, “said ANTAQ Statistical and Performance Evaluation manager Fernando Serra.

Paranaguá, with 13.8%, Santos (9.3%), Santarém (31.4%) and São Paulo (13.4%) were among the organized ports that grew cargo handling in the period, compared to the first quarter of 2017. Francisco do Sul (3.9%). Among the ports that registered a drop, there were those of Itaguaí, with a reduction of 4.6% in total volume and 8.9% in the volume of iron ore, its main merchandise, and Vila do Conde, with a decrease of 20 , 7%.

In relation to the Port of Santos, 25.1 million tons of gross cargoes were handled, especially corn, with growth of 192.3%, cellulose pulp (74.1%) and containers (14.5% %).

In the private terminals, cargo handling registered 165.1 million gross tons. This volume is 2.3% lower than in the first quarter of 2017, reflecting a decline in the movement of iron ore (5.9%), petroleum (3.0%) and bauxite (2.4%).

Types of navigation

In long-haul shipping, cargoes moved 179.7 million tons, representing a decrease of 1.9% compared to the first quarter of 2017, of which 33.6 million tons were imported and 146.1 million tons. tons of export cargoes, with the latter representing 81.3% of total cargoes handled.

In cabotage shipping, which handled 53.6 million tons, the drop was small: 0.9% compared to the first quarter of last year. The main goods traded in cabotage were oil, which represented 62.1% of the total, containers (11.8%) and bauxite (10.4%).

Container handling in cabotage increased by 12.8% in the first quarter of this year, compared to the same period in 2017. Among the main port facilities that moved this cargo profile, in cabotage, the Port of Salvador, with an increase of 101.8%, and Porto Chibatão (+27.6).

Inland navigation, port traffic corresponded to 14.5 million tons, representing a growth of 20.6% compared to the first quarter of 2017. This good performance is due to the growth of 422.7% in the movement of bauxite, increase of 52.8% in cellulose pulp, as well as the good performance of soybean – the main commodity operated in this type of navigation – which registered an increase of 11.7%.

Source: ANTAQ